A spectroscopic study of CO diluted in N-2 ice: Applications for Triton and Pluto

This paper presents an experimental study of CO diluted in solid N-2. We show that the 0-2 band of CO (peaking at similar to 4250 cm(-1)) is sensitive to the dilution in N-2, and that its frequency, width, and peak intensity are significantly sensitive to the crystalline phase (a or beta) of solid N-2. Moreover, in both N-2 phases, the width and peak intensity of the band are also sensitive to temperature. Finally, we discuss how these results can be used to analyze near-infrared reflectance spectra of Triton and Pluto and, in particular, how they can give information on the temperature and crystal phase of solid N-2. (C) 1997 Academic Press.